RESTON, Va., April 2, 2009 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ -- comScore, Inc. (Nasdaq: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released a study of online activity for the auto insurance market in 2008, which showed that consumers submitted requests for 32 million online quotes and purchased a record 2.4 million policies online during the year. Although the number of quotes requested online declined by 1 percent due to weaker consumer demand in the current economic environment, the number of auto insurance policies purchased online increased by 7 percent, indicating the increasing importance of online as a transactional medium.

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    Growth in Online Auto Insurance Activities
    2008 vs. 2007
    Total U.S. - Home/Work/University Locations
    Source: comScore Insights: Online Auto Insurance 2008 Year in Review

    Auto Insurance Activity                      Transactions (000)
                                        2007        2008        Percent Change

    Policies Purchased                 2,145       2,304                 7%
    Requests for Quotes Submitted     32,353      32,109                -1%

"The current weakness in U.S. consumer demand has affected nearly every industry, and auto insurance certainly has not been immune from the impact," said Kevin Levitt, comScore vice president. "With fewer consumers purchasing cars, there is less demand underlying auto insurance purchasing. Despite these conditions, however, the number of policies purchased online is still growing, which underscores how important the Internet has become as a transactional medium for the auto insurance industry."

E-Servicing Yields Cost-Savings to Auto Insurers

Other online auto insurance activities continuing to pick up steam included e-servicing activities such as online payments and policy management. E-servicing, in general, has represented a positive trend in the industry from both the consumer and insurer point of view. For consumers, e-servicing can reduce the time and hassle of managing one's policy, while minimizing paper transactions. For the insurer, e-servicing often represents a significant cost savings by reducing the need for customer service and material costs.

In 2008, total e-servicing visits at seven leading auto insurer sites grew by 6 percent to 127 million visits. This growth was driven by an increase in visits to both the online payments sections (up 5 percent) and policy management sections (up 6 percent) of the respective sites.

    Growth in Auto Insurer E-Servicing Visits*
    2008 vs. 2007
    Total U.S. - Home/Work/University Locations
    Source: comScore Insights: Online Auto Insurance 2008
     Year in Review

    Section of Web Sites            Total Visits (000)
                                  2007             2008     Percent Change

    Payment Section             51,734           54,500              5%
    Policy Management**         68,836           72,744              6%
    Total e-Servicing          120,571          127,244              6%

    *Sites included in analysis: Allstate.com, Esurance.com, GEICO.com,
     Nationwide.com, Progressive.com, ProgressiveAgent.com, StateFarm.com
    ** Policy management includes viewing and changing coverage, adding or
    removing a driver, adding or removing a car, and changing an address

"Many consumers prefer online policy management, because it gives them direct control of their policy and a streamlined means of making policy adjustments and payments," added Mr. Levitt. "The insurers also derive a particular benefit, especially in the current economy, by being able to reduce costs of service while enhancing the quality of their long-term relationship with consumers."

About comScore Insights

comScore Insights is a subscription based briefing service dedicated to the auto insurance industry. Subscribers gain access to comScore briefs, industry analysts and private webinars focused on the key issues facing the industry. The 2009 report schedule includes "Online Auto Insurance 2008 Year in Review," "2009 Online Auto Insurance Report," "Who is the Online Auto Insurance Shopper?," "Best Practices in Online Acquisition," and more. Leveraging comScore's proprietary data and industry experts, comScore Insights serves c-level executives, marketers and consultants with valuable market intelligence to drive strategy, marketing and risk management decisions.

To request more information about comScore Insights and pricing, please contact klevitt@comscore.com

About comScore

comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR) is a global leader in measuring the digital world. For more information, please visit www.comscore.com/companyinfo.

SOURCE comScore, Inc.

http://www.comscore.com

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